The Road: Case 1 Philip Hughes
Transfer of Power
By Talonblade
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam or any characters contained in this story.
In the cold void of space a group of Federation cargo ships and their escort of cruisers were making their way to the lunar city of Von Braun. In their holds the cargo ships carried Gundalium alloy meant for the Anaheim Electronics facilities on the moon. Suddenly the pilot of the lead ship noticed a glint in the blackness ahead of them.
Straining his vision he could see some kind of object coming in fast. As it quickly closed in details of the object became easier to make out. The pilot's eyes grew wide as he realized what it was.
"Oh my god...It's a Gunda-!!!"
Before he could finish a massive beam of plasma obliterated the pilot and his ship. The other transports and escorts followed shortly after.
"Those who lay eyes on a Gundam shall not live to tell about it."
At Von Braun the Albion was finally entering port. With it was an escort of Federation ships dispatched from Von Braun when the Albion had sent out a call for assistance. Though they arrived too late to assist in the battle they escorted the Albion the rest of the way just in case there was another attack.
As the Albion pulled into port the crew was finally able to let its guard down after a very stressful final leg of their journey. After checking in with his superiors Captain Eiphar Synapse allowed the crew and pilots a period of shore leave as the GP01 was unloaded and reconfigured to its Full-Vernian form.
There was a jubilant mood as the young men and women of the Albion spilled out of the ship anxious for a night of revelry. Not only was the city of Von Braun home to Anaheim Electronics' lunar factory it was also a truly massive city with all the theaters, parks, clubs, bars, museums and other attractions one would expect from a major earth city like New York or Paris.
The crew split up into smaller groups and went their separate ways as they left the port area. Yu, Samana and Philip were together as always and with them were bridge officers Jaqueline Simon and Peter Scott. They hit a series of bars and by one o'clock in the morning found themselves in a particularly seedy establishment in the bad part of town.
Sitting at a table nursing a glass of bourbon and ice Philip looked around at his comrades with alcohol clouded vision. Samana and Jaqueline were singing a drunken country-western duet at the karaoke machine, Peter was passed out at the table next to him, and Yu was sitting in the corner quietly drinking saki, a serious look upon his face.
With a great amount of concentration Philip rose to his feet. Impressively he made it to Yu's table almost without stumbling and most importantly without spilling his bourbon. Philip took a seat in front of Yu.
"Why the sour expression Yu?" Philip asked.
"It's nothing," Yu responded.
Philip raised an eyebrow and gave Yu a disbelieving look. Yu sighed knowing that Philip wouldn't stop now until he got the truth.
"It just seems strange to be celebrating. The Zeons are still going to be after the Gundam. We're all still in danger."
Philip's face suddenly became very serious. Despite his drunkenness he managed to sit up straight in his chair and look Yu in the eye.
"You think I don't know that? Listen Yu, every time we go out it's like rolling the dice. Tomorrow, next week, next month, we could die any day. It's all chance. There's not much we can do about it so what's the point in worrying? We're just trying to live life to the fullest while we're still here."
Yu had a hard time finding a flaw in Philip's logic.
"If you think about it to much you'll just make yourself crazy," Philip added.
Yu saw Philip's point and his face brightened a little.
"Come on! Join the party!" Philip said getting up.
To Yu's surprise Philip grabbed him by the arm and pulled him to his feet. Philip then began pulling Yu towards the karaoke machine.
"I've got the perfect song!" Philip announced.
"Oooohhh no! I'm not drunk enough to start singing at that thing!" Yu protested.
"Sure you are!" Philip said laughing as he pulled Yu towards the whistling and cheering Jaqueline and Samana.
Two days and a severe hangover later the crew and pilots were back to work testing the Gundam prototype. With the GP01 Full-Vernian on board the Albion returned to space and headed for the coordinates that had been designated for the Gundam's testing. When they reached the destination Yu launched in the prototype.
The Gundam Prototype Unit One, codename: Zephyranthes was the latest in the Earth Federation's series of Gundam mobile suits. Like its predecessors the newest model had a red, blue, and white color scheme and in the Full-Vernian form it had numerous thrusters for added maneuverability in space. It carried a beam rifle in its right hand and had a shield attached to the left forearm.
Yu started out by performing some basic maneuvers. The Gundam responded perfectly so the tests were alloyed to proceed. The Albion launched a number of unmanned drones. Yu took aim with the Gundam's beam rifle and fired, hitting one of the drones dead center.
As Yu lined up another shot final preparations were being made just out of the Albion's sensor range. Cima and her force of Zeon marines were suiting up to ambush the Gundam prototype. On board her flagship, the Lili Marleen, Cima climbed into her customized commander's version of the Gelgoog Marine.
When the first attack on the Gundam failed Cima was given the responsibility of capturing or destroying the prototype. She had no intention of repeating her predecessor's failure. With an elite force armed with powerful Gelgoogs under her command Cima stood a good chance of succeeding where they did not.
"Cima, our forces are ready to attack," Detroff Cosell, Cima's deputy commander, reported over the radio.
"Good. We launch in three minutes. The second MS team with will cut off the Gundam from its ship and prevent any attempts to reinforce it. The rest of you will follow me and attack the Gundam head on," Cima said.
Three minutes later a dozen Gelgoogs launched into space. Cima's commander's unit was purple and bronze in color and was armed with a beam rifle. The other Gelgoog Marines were green and gray and carried 90mm machineguns. With great speed they closed in the on the GP01.
On the bridge of the Albion alarms sounded as the Zeon mobile suits entered sensor range. Jaqueline Simon screamed a warning to Yu over the radio but he had already seen them. Knowing it was too late to retreat, Yu prepared for the onslaught.
He was quickly surrounded by enemy MS who fired at the Gundam from all directions. Yu drew a bead on one of the Gelgoogs and blew it away with his beam rifle while avoiding machinegun rounds from the other mobile suits. He then ignited a beam saber and charged the nearest Gelgoog. The Zeon pilot was taken off guard by the Gundam's speed and Yu slashed his mobile suit in half.
"He's good," Cima acknowledged silently to herself, shocked at how quickly two Gelgoogs were destroyed.
Meanwhile the Albion sent out a distress signal to Von Braun but help wouldn't arrive for at least ten minutes. They would have to fend for themselves until then. Philip and Samana were already in their mobile suits by now and they were quickly launched to assist the GP01. They piloted the same GM Custom and GM Cannon that they used in the earlier battle.
"Damn! I didn't think they would have the balls to attack us this close to Von Braun. Their commander must be insane!" Philip said as they raced towards the battle.
As they rushed to Yu's aid though the Federation pilots suddenly came under fire from three Gelgoog Marines that had split off from the rest.
"Crap!" Philip spat in disgust.
Yu was still holding his own against the attackers, but just barely. He aimed his beam rifle and wasted another Gelgoog as the Zeons pressed their attack. A second Gelgoog jetted towards Yu, beam saber in hand. Yu deflected his enemy's blade then opened up with the Gundam's head vulcans and destroyed the Gelgoog.
All the while Cima was hanging back from the battle, waiting for the right time to strike. She took careful aim with her beam rifle and as Yu was fending off the Gelgoog she fired three times. Yu saw the incoming beams of energy at the last second and managed to dodge the first two but the last shot hit the Gundam's beam rifle destroying it.
"Shit!" Yu growled, the first cracks starting to appear in his usually cool exterior.
"Now we have him!" Cima yelled to her men as she drew her beam saber and charged the Gundam.
Yu moved his beam saber to the Gundam's right hand and used it to block Cima's blade as her Gelgoog slammed into him at top speed. The Gundam was knocked backyard, but just a little before Yu kicked in the thrusters and began pushing back against Cima's suit. Their beam sabers sparked and hissed as they were pressed together between the colossal machines.
At the same time three Gelgoogs were keeping Samana and Philip at bay. So far the fight had been evenly matched with neither side able to get the upper hand. Suddenly a shot from Samana's beam cannons skewered a Gelgoog and it exploded.
"I got one!" Samana yelled triumphantly.
"Watch out!" Philip tried to warn him, but it was to late.
One of the Gelgoogs had gotten behind Samana and it raked him with its 90mm machinegun. The GM Cannon II shook violently as the bullets slammed into its back leaving smoking craters. Philip fired his rifle at the attacker but it dodged and flew off.
"Samana! Are you ok?!" Philip yelled.
"Y-yeah," Samana answered weakly. The mobile suit's heavy armor had saved Samana's life but his MS has now crippled.
Cima and Yu continued their duel, clashing beam sabers again and again. Suddenly another Gelgoog rushed Yu firing its machinegun. Already busy with Cima, Yu was unable to dodge and the Gundam was peppered with bullets. Fortunately the suit's Gundalium alloy was able to absorb the impacts with little damage. Without his beam rifle and desperate Yu drew his other beam saber and threw it. The Gelgoog was impaled by the blade and exploded.
While Yu was distracted Cima suddenly pulled back and fired her beam rifle. There was no way to dodge at such close range and the beam struck the side of the Gundam's torso. There was an explosion on the inside of the cockpit as the shot tore through the Gundam's armor and jagged chunks metal were sent flying into Yu's chest. Yu screamed in pain and slumped forward as the lights flickered and dimmed.
"No! Yu!" Philip shouted.
There was no way for him to help his friend. Philip could barely keep himself and Samana alive at this point. He was fighting two Gelgoogs and protecting Samana whose mobile suit could hardly move. His piloting skills were stretched to their limit.
It's ammo exhausted, one of the Gelgoogs drew its beam saber and rushed Philip with startling speed, swinging its blade down at the head of Philip's GM. Philip quickly drew his own beam saber and blocked his opponent's blade in midair. Then, pressing this rifle's barrel to the Gelgoog's cockpit, he blew it away at point blank range.
"Yu! Talk to me!" Philip yelled into the radio, but there was no response.
Inside the GP01's cockpit Yu was passed out and the Gundam floated lifelessly. Cima smiled wickedly at her prize. Wouldn't her superiors be pleased when she brought them the Federation's newest Gundam, and in almost perfect condition.
"Ok, lets get this sucker back to the ship," Cima said.
Two Gelgoogs moved in. They grabbed the Gundam by either arm and began carrying it back to the Lili Marleen. Philip looked on in horror as Yu was dragged from the battlefield. He started to give chase but the surviving Gelgoog quickly blocked his way. Philip cursed himself. Even if he could somehow get past the last Zeon he couldn't just abandon Samana in his helpless state.
As Philip wrestled with what to do the Gelgoog in front of him suddenly exploded. The explosion threw Philip's mobile suit slightly backward and at first he wasn't quite sure what had happened. Then one of the Gelgoogs carrying away the Gundam exploded as well.
Philip looked around and saw the blue streak of a mobile suit's thrusters heading towards the captured Gundam. In front of the streak he could see a white mobile suit. Philip quickly recognized it as the Tallgeese, personal mobile suit of Federation ace Zechs Merquise. The Tallgeese was knightly in appearance with a dobergun, essentially a giant artillery cannon, attached to its right arm and a round shield on its left arm.
"Get your wingman to safety. I'll retrieve the Gundam" Philip heard Zechs say over the radio.
Philip was shocked by the sudden appearance of Zechs but he obeyed. Grabbing a hold of the damaged GM Cannon he started pulling it and Samana back towards the Albion. Zechs continued to close in on the Gundam and remaining Gelgoogs.
"No, not when I'm so close!" Cima yelled.
Cima and her marines opened up on the Tallgeese but Zechs easily dodged everything they threw at him. Drawing a beam saber he sliced one of the Gelgoogs in two leaving only Cima and Detroff alive.
"Cima, we must retreat!" Detroff told her.
"Damn you Zechs! You'll pay for humiliating me like this!" Cima vowed as they fled.
Zechs didn't follow. Instead he took hold of the Gundam and carried it back to the Albion. Inside the Albion's launch bays Philip and Samana had already exited their mobile suits and they rushed to where the Tallgeese set down the Gundam. Mechanics worked feverishly to pry open the hatch to the Gundam's cockpit.
The hatch finally opened to reveal Yu slumped forward with blood oozing from tears in his spacesuit. Samana and Philip carefully removed him from the cockpit and placed him on a stretcher brought by two medics. They quickly carried Yu to the infirmary.
The Albion hurried back to Von Braun where Yu was taken to a hospital for surgery. In the lobby Philip and Samana waited anxiously along with members of the Albion's crew. Every now and then Philip would look down at his hands, still faintly red with blood after lifting Yu from the cockpit. After what seemed like an eternity a doctor finally appeared to address them.
"Lt. Kajima is going to be fine. Fortunately the suit he whore stopped most to the shrapnel. However, he won't be piloting again anytime soon," the doctor informed them.
Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief but Philip went back to looking at his hands then at the floor.
"Are you gonna be ok Philip?" Samana asked his friend concerned.
"Yeah. Just thinking, that's all. A couple of days ago I was telling Yu why he should lighten up. I told him we could all die any day and there was no point in worrying about it, but I don't think I really believed that. Our team's been so lucky so far I've been feeling kind of invincible. For a long time now I don't think I really thought that any of us could actually get seriously hurt much less killed. Guess this is sort of a rude awakening," Philip said.
"Come on Philip, your being to hard on yourself. You didn't cause Yu's injuries."
"I know. It's just a reality check that's all. Having almost all of us wiped out in one battle."
Just then Zechs entered the waiting room. Samana and Philip noticed him and stood up as he approached. Zechs was a tall, thin man with long blonde hair and whore a uniform that identified him as a member of the Specials, an elite branch of the Federation military. Oddly he also whore a metal helmet and facemask that hid the upper half of his face.
"I came to see how the pilot of the Gundam was doing," Zechs told them.
"Yu's going to be fine," Philip said.
"Thank you for your help earlier," Samana said.
"Just doing my job. I'm happy to hear he'll be ok, the Federation needs good pilots. You'll have to forgive me but I can't stay. I have responsibilities elsewhere. Maybe we'll see each other on the battlefield again someday."
Zechs shook both of their hands and was gone.
"Wow, I never thought I would actually meat the famous "Lightning Baron"," Samana said.
Philip didn't seem impressed.
"Even if he did save Yu's and our lives, that guy gives me the creeps"
They sat back down again and waited, hoping that they would be allowed to see Yu sometime that night. Before to long Captain Synapse walked over to them. The Captain had arrived at the hospital with the rest of the crew but had been called away and was just now returning. Philip and Samana snapped to attention and saluted.
"At ease gentlemen. I wanted you to hear this from me first. Admiral Cowen has been informed of Lt. Kajima's condition and doesn't believe we can afford to delay this project. There for Lt. Hughes will become the new test pilot of the Gundam Prototype Unit One. I know this is a difficult time Lieutenant but you need to be ready. You start piloting as soon as the GP01 is repaired."
Philip didn't say a word. He just started walking towards the exit.
"Where are you going?" Samana asked.
"I'm going to do what any sane man would do after a day like today."
The Captain and Samana looked at him as if to ask "And that is?"
"Get stinking drunk," Philip said as he walked through the door.
Ok, the second chapter is finally done. Sorry it took so long for me to finish. Hopefully the third chapter will be up faster. Please don't leave a review saying "Zechs doesn't exist in UC Gundam, blah, blah, blah." I said right in the summary that this is alternate UC 0083. This story takes place in an alternate universe of my creation and in this universe some of the characters from Gundam Wing exist. I put this story in the UC Gundam section of because it's two thirds UC Gundam with some "guest stars" from Gundam Wing. Anyway, if you read this story please leave a review. It's the very least you could do after the free entertainment I provided you.
By Talonblade
Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam or any characters contained in this story.
In the cold void of space a group of Federation cargo ships and their escort of cruisers were making their way to the lunar city of Von Braun. In their holds the cargo ships carried Gundalium alloy meant for the Anaheim Electronics facilities on the moon. Suddenly the pilot of the lead ship noticed a glint in the blackness ahead of them.
Straining his vision he could see some kind of object coming in fast. As it quickly closed in details of the object became easier to make out. The pilot's eyes grew wide as he realized what it was.
"Oh my god...It's a Gunda-!!!"
Before he could finish a massive beam of plasma obliterated the pilot and his ship. The other transports and escorts followed shortly after.
"Those who lay eyes on a Gundam shall not live to tell about it."
At Von Braun the Albion was finally entering port. With it was an escort of Federation ships dispatched from Von Braun when the Albion had sent out a call for assistance. Though they arrived too late to assist in the battle they escorted the Albion the rest of the way just in case there was another attack.
As the Albion pulled into port the crew was finally able to let its guard down after a very stressful final leg of their journey. After checking in with his superiors Captain Eiphar Synapse allowed the crew and pilots a period of shore leave as the GP01 was unloaded and reconfigured to its Full-Vernian form.
There was a jubilant mood as the young men and women of the Albion spilled out of the ship anxious for a night of revelry. Not only was the city of Von Braun home to Anaheim Electronics' lunar factory it was also a truly massive city with all the theaters, parks, clubs, bars, museums and other attractions one would expect from a major earth city like New York or Paris.
The crew split up into smaller groups and went their separate ways as they left the port area. Yu, Samana and Philip were together as always and with them were bridge officers Jaqueline Simon and Peter Scott. They hit a series of bars and by one o'clock in the morning found themselves in a particularly seedy establishment in the bad part of town.
Sitting at a table nursing a glass of bourbon and ice Philip looked around at his comrades with alcohol clouded vision. Samana and Jaqueline were singing a drunken country-western duet at the karaoke machine, Peter was passed out at the table next to him, and Yu was sitting in the corner quietly drinking saki, a serious look upon his face.
With a great amount of concentration Philip rose to his feet. Impressively he made it to Yu's table almost without stumbling and most importantly without spilling his bourbon. Philip took a seat in front of Yu.
"Why the sour expression Yu?" Philip asked.
"It's nothing," Yu responded.
Philip raised an eyebrow and gave Yu a disbelieving look. Yu sighed knowing that Philip wouldn't stop now until he got the truth.
"It just seems strange to be celebrating. The Zeons are still going to be after the Gundam. We're all still in danger."
Philip's face suddenly became very serious. Despite his drunkenness he managed to sit up straight in his chair and look Yu in the eye.
"You think I don't know that? Listen Yu, every time we go out it's like rolling the dice. Tomorrow, next week, next month, we could die any day. It's all chance. There's not much we can do about it so what's the point in worrying? We're just trying to live life to the fullest while we're still here."
Yu had a hard time finding a flaw in Philip's logic.
"If you think about it to much you'll just make yourself crazy," Philip added.
Yu saw Philip's point and his face brightened a little.
"Come on! Join the party!" Philip said getting up.
To Yu's surprise Philip grabbed him by the arm and pulled him to his feet. Philip then began pulling Yu towards the karaoke machine.
"I've got the perfect song!" Philip announced.
"Oooohhh no! I'm not drunk enough to start singing at that thing!" Yu protested.
"Sure you are!" Philip said laughing as he pulled Yu towards the whistling and cheering Jaqueline and Samana.
Two days and a severe hangover later the crew and pilots were back to work testing the Gundam prototype. With the GP01 Full-Vernian on board the Albion returned to space and headed for the coordinates that had been designated for the Gundam's testing. When they reached the destination Yu launched in the prototype.
The Gundam Prototype Unit One, codename: Zephyranthes was the latest in the Earth Federation's series of Gundam mobile suits. Like its predecessors the newest model had a red, blue, and white color scheme and in the Full-Vernian form it had numerous thrusters for added maneuverability in space. It carried a beam rifle in its right hand and had a shield attached to the left forearm.
Yu started out by performing some basic maneuvers. The Gundam responded perfectly so the tests were alloyed to proceed. The Albion launched a number of unmanned drones. Yu took aim with the Gundam's beam rifle and fired, hitting one of the drones dead center.
As Yu lined up another shot final preparations were being made just out of the Albion's sensor range. Cima and her force of Zeon marines were suiting up to ambush the Gundam prototype. On board her flagship, the Lili Marleen, Cima climbed into her customized commander's version of the Gelgoog Marine.
When the first attack on the Gundam failed Cima was given the responsibility of capturing or destroying the prototype. She had no intention of repeating her predecessor's failure. With an elite force armed with powerful Gelgoogs under her command Cima stood a good chance of succeeding where they did not.
"Cima, our forces are ready to attack," Detroff Cosell, Cima's deputy commander, reported over the radio.
"Good. We launch in three minutes. The second MS team with will cut off the Gundam from its ship and prevent any attempts to reinforce it. The rest of you will follow me and attack the Gundam head on," Cima said.
Three minutes later a dozen Gelgoogs launched into space. Cima's commander's unit was purple and bronze in color and was armed with a beam rifle. The other Gelgoog Marines were green and gray and carried 90mm machineguns. With great speed they closed in the on the GP01.
On the bridge of the Albion alarms sounded as the Zeon mobile suits entered sensor range. Jaqueline Simon screamed a warning to Yu over the radio but he had already seen them. Knowing it was too late to retreat, Yu prepared for the onslaught.
He was quickly surrounded by enemy MS who fired at the Gundam from all directions. Yu drew a bead on one of the Gelgoogs and blew it away with his beam rifle while avoiding machinegun rounds from the other mobile suits. He then ignited a beam saber and charged the nearest Gelgoog. The Zeon pilot was taken off guard by the Gundam's speed and Yu slashed his mobile suit in half.
"He's good," Cima acknowledged silently to herself, shocked at how quickly two Gelgoogs were destroyed.
Meanwhile the Albion sent out a distress signal to Von Braun but help wouldn't arrive for at least ten minutes. They would have to fend for themselves until then. Philip and Samana were already in their mobile suits by now and they were quickly launched to assist the GP01. They piloted the same GM Custom and GM Cannon that they used in the earlier battle.
"Damn! I didn't think they would have the balls to attack us this close to Von Braun. Their commander must be insane!" Philip said as they raced towards the battle.
As they rushed to Yu's aid though the Federation pilots suddenly came under fire from three Gelgoog Marines that had split off from the rest.
"Crap!" Philip spat in disgust.
Yu was still holding his own against the attackers, but just barely. He aimed his beam rifle and wasted another Gelgoog as the Zeons pressed their attack. A second Gelgoog jetted towards Yu, beam saber in hand. Yu deflected his enemy's blade then opened up with the Gundam's head vulcans and destroyed the Gelgoog.
All the while Cima was hanging back from the battle, waiting for the right time to strike. She took careful aim with her beam rifle and as Yu was fending off the Gelgoog she fired three times. Yu saw the incoming beams of energy at the last second and managed to dodge the first two but the last shot hit the Gundam's beam rifle destroying it.
"Shit!" Yu growled, the first cracks starting to appear in his usually cool exterior.
"Now we have him!" Cima yelled to her men as she drew her beam saber and charged the Gundam.
Yu moved his beam saber to the Gundam's right hand and used it to block Cima's blade as her Gelgoog slammed into him at top speed. The Gundam was knocked backyard, but just a little before Yu kicked in the thrusters and began pushing back against Cima's suit. Their beam sabers sparked and hissed as they were pressed together between the colossal machines.
At the same time three Gelgoogs were keeping Samana and Philip at bay. So far the fight had been evenly matched with neither side able to get the upper hand. Suddenly a shot from Samana's beam cannons skewered a Gelgoog and it exploded.
"I got one!" Samana yelled triumphantly.
"Watch out!" Philip tried to warn him, but it was to late.
One of the Gelgoogs had gotten behind Samana and it raked him with its 90mm machinegun. The GM Cannon II shook violently as the bullets slammed into its back leaving smoking craters. Philip fired his rifle at the attacker but it dodged and flew off.
"Samana! Are you ok?!" Philip yelled.
"Y-yeah," Samana answered weakly. The mobile suit's heavy armor had saved Samana's life but his MS has now crippled.
Cima and Yu continued their duel, clashing beam sabers again and again. Suddenly another Gelgoog rushed Yu firing its machinegun. Already busy with Cima, Yu was unable to dodge and the Gundam was peppered with bullets. Fortunately the suit's Gundalium alloy was able to absorb the impacts with little damage. Without his beam rifle and desperate Yu drew his other beam saber and threw it. The Gelgoog was impaled by the blade and exploded.
While Yu was distracted Cima suddenly pulled back and fired her beam rifle. There was no way to dodge at such close range and the beam struck the side of the Gundam's torso. There was an explosion on the inside of the cockpit as the shot tore through the Gundam's armor and jagged chunks metal were sent flying into Yu's chest. Yu screamed in pain and slumped forward as the lights flickered and dimmed.
"No! Yu!" Philip shouted.
There was no way for him to help his friend. Philip could barely keep himself and Samana alive at this point. He was fighting two Gelgoogs and protecting Samana whose mobile suit could hardly move. His piloting skills were stretched to their limit.
It's ammo exhausted, one of the Gelgoogs drew its beam saber and rushed Philip with startling speed, swinging its blade down at the head of Philip's GM. Philip quickly drew his own beam saber and blocked his opponent's blade in midair. Then, pressing this rifle's barrel to the Gelgoog's cockpit, he blew it away at point blank range.
"Yu! Talk to me!" Philip yelled into the radio, but there was no response.
Inside the GP01's cockpit Yu was passed out and the Gundam floated lifelessly. Cima smiled wickedly at her prize. Wouldn't her superiors be pleased when she brought them the Federation's newest Gundam, and in almost perfect condition.
"Ok, lets get this sucker back to the ship," Cima said.
Two Gelgoogs moved in. They grabbed the Gundam by either arm and began carrying it back to the Lili Marleen. Philip looked on in horror as Yu was dragged from the battlefield. He started to give chase but the surviving Gelgoog quickly blocked his way. Philip cursed himself. Even if he could somehow get past the last Zeon he couldn't just abandon Samana in his helpless state.
As Philip wrestled with what to do the Gelgoog in front of him suddenly exploded. The explosion threw Philip's mobile suit slightly backward and at first he wasn't quite sure what had happened. Then one of the Gelgoogs carrying away the Gundam exploded as well.
Philip looked around and saw the blue streak of a mobile suit's thrusters heading towards the captured Gundam. In front of the streak he could see a white mobile suit. Philip quickly recognized it as the Tallgeese, personal mobile suit of Federation ace Zechs Merquise. The Tallgeese was knightly in appearance with a dobergun, essentially a giant artillery cannon, attached to its right arm and a round shield on its left arm.
"Get your wingman to safety. I'll retrieve the Gundam" Philip heard Zechs say over the radio.
Philip was shocked by the sudden appearance of Zechs but he obeyed. Grabbing a hold of the damaged GM Cannon he started pulling it and Samana back towards the Albion. Zechs continued to close in on the Gundam and remaining Gelgoogs.
"No, not when I'm so close!" Cima yelled.
Cima and her marines opened up on the Tallgeese but Zechs easily dodged everything they threw at him. Drawing a beam saber he sliced one of the Gelgoogs in two leaving only Cima and Detroff alive.
"Cima, we must retreat!" Detroff told her.
"Damn you Zechs! You'll pay for humiliating me like this!" Cima vowed as they fled.
Zechs didn't follow. Instead he took hold of the Gundam and carried it back to the Albion. Inside the Albion's launch bays Philip and Samana had already exited their mobile suits and they rushed to where the Tallgeese set down the Gundam. Mechanics worked feverishly to pry open the hatch to the Gundam's cockpit.
The hatch finally opened to reveal Yu slumped forward with blood oozing from tears in his spacesuit. Samana and Philip carefully removed him from the cockpit and placed him on a stretcher brought by two medics. They quickly carried Yu to the infirmary.
The Albion hurried back to Von Braun where Yu was taken to a hospital for surgery. In the lobby Philip and Samana waited anxiously along with members of the Albion's crew. Every now and then Philip would look down at his hands, still faintly red with blood after lifting Yu from the cockpit. After what seemed like an eternity a doctor finally appeared to address them.
"Lt. Kajima is going to be fine. Fortunately the suit he whore stopped most to the shrapnel. However, he won't be piloting again anytime soon," the doctor informed them.
Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief but Philip went back to looking at his hands then at the floor.
"Are you gonna be ok Philip?" Samana asked his friend concerned.
"Yeah. Just thinking, that's all. A couple of days ago I was telling Yu why he should lighten up. I told him we could all die any day and there was no point in worrying about it, but I don't think I really believed that. Our team's been so lucky so far I've been feeling kind of invincible. For a long time now I don't think I really thought that any of us could actually get seriously hurt much less killed. Guess this is sort of a rude awakening," Philip said.
"Come on Philip, your being to hard on yourself. You didn't cause Yu's injuries."
"I know. It's just a reality check that's all. Having almost all of us wiped out in one battle."
Just then Zechs entered the waiting room. Samana and Philip noticed him and stood up as he approached. Zechs was a tall, thin man with long blonde hair and whore a uniform that identified him as a member of the Specials, an elite branch of the Federation military. Oddly he also whore a metal helmet and facemask that hid the upper half of his face.
"I came to see how the pilot of the Gundam was doing," Zechs told them.
"Yu's going to be fine," Philip said.
"Thank you for your help earlier," Samana said.
"Just doing my job. I'm happy to hear he'll be ok, the Federation needs good pilots. You'll have to forgive me but I can't stay. I have responsibilities elsewhere. Maybe we'll see each other on the battlefield again someday."
Zechs shook both of their hands and was gone.
"Wow, I never thought I would actually meat the famous "Lightning Baron"," Samana said.
Philip didn't seem impressed.
"Even if he did save Yu's and our lives, that guy gives me the creeps"
They sat back down again and waited, hoping that they would be allowed to see Yu sometime that night. Before to long Captain Synapse walked over to them. The Captain had arrived at the hospital with the rest of the crew but had been called away and was just now returning. Philip and Samana snapped to attention and saluted.
"At ease gentlemen. I wanted you to hear this from me first. Admiral Cowen has been informed of Lt. Kajima's condition and doesn't believe we can afford to delay this project. There for Lt. Hughes will become the new test pilot of the Gundam Prototype Unit One. I know this is a difficult time Lieutenant but you need to be ready. You start piloting as soon as the GP01 is repaired."
Philip didn't say a word. He just started walking towards the exit.
"Where are you going?" Samana asked.
"I'm going to do what any sane man would do after a day like today."
The Captain and Samana looked at him as if to ask "And that is?"
"Get stinking drunk," Philip said as he walked through the door.
Ok, the second chapter is finally done. Sorry it took so long for me to finish. Hopefully the third chapter will be up faster. Please don't leave a review saying "Zechs doesn't exist in UC Gundam, blah, blah, blah." I said right in the summary that this is alternate UC 0083. This story takes place in an alternate universe of my creation and in this universe some of the characters from Gundam Wing exist. I put this story in the UC Gundam section of because it's two thirds UC Gundam with some "guest stars" from Gundam Wing. Anyway, if you read this story please leave a review. It's the very least you could do after the free entertainment I provided you.